Singapore Chamber of Commerce Indonesia

𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘄𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸: 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗮’𝘀 𝗕𝘆𝗴𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗘𝗿𝗮 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. With colleague Joe (left in photo), we took Andy (middle) to the grand old Oasis restaurant in Jakarta. Andy was the head honcho of a large global fund management firm in North America, which had a sizeable investment exposure in Indonesia. It was always very fascinating to discuss and exchange views of the financial markets and the economy with investors.

𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗥𝗶𝗷𝘀𝘁𝘁𝗮𝗳𝗲𝗹 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘁. The Oasis restaurant is always a favourite among our foreign visitors because it has a nostalgic atmosphere of Indonesia’s bygone era, which provides a glimpse of the graceful fine dining traditions during the colonial days. A restaurant that still served Rijsttafel, a Dutch creation, where a large range of Indonesian dishes were served by a long row of sarong kebaya-dressed ladies, each serving you from a different platter. And during dinner, we were serenaded by Batak singers who sang in harmony, alongside guitarists, tenor, baritone, and bass vocals, with strong, mellow voices.

And Michael Bloomberg was also taken to Oasis. Being ignorant, we knew Bloomberg only because his name was on the trading terminals that we used at work. That was before he became the New York Major, and democratic nomination for the US presidential election.

𝗕𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗴 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁. Even then, Mike would not just go to any restaurant. We spoke to a senior Bloomberg executive, who conveyed to him how ‘great’ the food and ambience of the restaurant was. He was not terribly excited about it, until I mentioned that Bill Clinton also went to that restaurant, shortly before, during his official visit to Indonesia, after which Bloomberg promptly nodded in agreement. I guess, if it was good enough for the President of the United States, it can’t be too bad.

𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀𝘁. Our firm was one of the earliest subscribers to Bloomberg terminals in Indonesia, perhaps a reason why we were set up to meet, when they first set up their operations in Jakarta. Couldn’t remember much of what we discussed, which revolved around the challenges of doing business in Indonesia. What I remembered most was that Mike’s eyes lit up when he described to me about how he flew his own plane from the US to Indonesia, which really amazed me because that was some 10,000 miles away or 11 hours difference in time zones. After we spoke, it was apparent to us that Michael Bloomberg was a highly motivated and visionary person with some extremely exceptional talents.

So it was no surprise to us that those Bloomberg terminals and financial database they collected transformed the financial industry, and he later went on to receive numerous honours and awards, including from President Biden and Queen Elizabeth II. And in the process, he became the thirteenth-richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$106 billion, according to Forbes in 2024.

𝗘𝘅𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗟𝗲𝗲 𝗪𝗲𝗶 𝗟𝗶𝗻𝗴. Sadly, Lee Wei Ling, aged 69, daughter and sister of Singapore’s previous prime ministers, Lee Kuan Yew and Lee Hsien Loong, has died of a degenerative brain disease this morning. She was a paediatric neurologist, and had diagnosed herself, some years ago, to have progressive supranuclear palsy, before her doctors did.

We went to the same high school, Raffles Institution, though she was many years older than I. Despite being a consistent top student at school, and awarded a President’s Scholarship to study medicine in the National University of Singapore, there were many detractors who frequently doubted Wei Ling’s capabilities in the initial years. She came from a family that was the closest Singapore had to royalty, and to be also the smartest in class was simply ‘too good to be true’ for some people who do not know her. But we had mutual friends (seniors at high school) and school teachers who spoke of Wei Ling’s brilliance. You simply cannot fudge the results of Singapore’s national exams, conducted by Cambridge GCE, which are internationally recognised. And not only that, she was also a great athlete, a top runner who set various records in middle distance events at RI. Which was why we were not surprised at all when we heard Wei Ling ran up the steep steps of the Great Wall of China ‘with nary a pause for breath’, while she accompanied her parents during a state visit to Beijing in 1976.

We may think being born into a privilege family can give us a head start in life, and access to endless opportunities. But in fact, this can be rather tricky under the public glare, much like growing up in a fishbowl. Despite her extraordinary accomplishments, we had always imagined Wei Ling could have achieved far greater successes in Singapore’s meritocracy system if she had been born in a modest ordinary family.